Why Are We Waiting For The Rollback?

The same organizations that pushed for compromises are threatening to oppose new testing rules even after getting their way. Why hold off until after several seminal courses host 2027 majors?

The 2027 major season figures to be a three-out-of-four beauty.

Augusta National will be joined by PGA Frisco, Pebble Beach, and the Old Course.

That’s three first-ballot HOF, military-grade classics and a Dallas-adjacent real estate development featuring barren lots starting in the high sixes. Google Earth:

Three of four majors heading to the most storied courses imaginable will be pretty great. But we also know these world-famous venues are at max capacity. They won’t play like they could or should.

Set aside the architectural geekery about playing masterpieces as they were designed. And momentarily forget about the fun of majors going to historic places where the modern version of the sport took shape, even if it’s a factor no other sport enjoys. Just think about how long the days will be. These innocent gems have been stretched, compromised, and even emasculated to accommodate a technology-driven distance explosion. One that was supposed to be addressed after a 2002 joint pledge.

It’s going to be tough to move a major championship field around these places before sunset. And that’s saying a lot when one of the courses is in Scotland. In July.

With new back tees, all the par-5s will be reachable, as will a few par-4s. It won’t take much to grind things to a halt. A ruling. A course setup hiccup. Or maybe a little too much wind for today’s precious ones who can only pull it back when they get the wind they want.

Throw in the continued onslaught of speedsters replacing mere mortals, and by 2027, Augusta National, Pebble Beach, and The Old Course will be six-hour-plus nightmares. A seven-hour round is not out of the question given what happened at St Andrews in 2022 when a few late groups on Thursday pushed 6:40. That’s the round time, not the clock time.

Besides logistics, there is the obvious absurdity of not getting to see golf’s most cherished venues play somewhat as they have for previous generations. And all so that 150-or-so golfers can peddle products and continue to believe they hit it 320 thanks to planks and avocado diets. Yet any drivers and balls manufactured over four years ago rarely make it into tour bags.

Just look at how compromised the “athletes” were with persimmon drivers last week at TPC Sawgrass trying to reach the fifth fairway. The numbers were so bad that only one overall accuracy number was shared on social. No distance numbers. Remember, these more-athletic-than-ever golfers are trying to hit the same clubs Tiger Woods played at the start of his amateur career and still occasionally practices with.

As of now, a watered-down distance solution awaits in 2028. This came after an exhaustive multi-year study, several feedback periods, and strict adherence to protocols designed to prevent faux threats from craven louts masquerading as traditionalists. The new testing parameters were whittled down to the golf ball and might lop 15-20 yards off drives even though the modern driver is just as much a part of the equation. The updated ball testing parameters were designed to reduce distance at the highest level while having little impact on most golfers. Yet all their whining got it pushed off to 2028 for elite competition, and to 2030 for everyone else. The two PGA’s demanded multiple compromises to the initial equipment rules proposed by the R&A and USGA. Here’s what they got:

• A proposed 2026 start date was pushed to 2028.

• New testing rules that would have only created a local rule “competition ball” were dashed after PGA pushback, therefore bringing golfers of all skill levels into the mix because they want to sell average chops what they get for free, regardless of the actual benefits.

• Via their role throughout the process, the PGA’s knocked the testing conditions down from 127 m.p.h. to 125 m.p.h.

• New driver-face testing rules that would have created competition-only local rule for elites were torpedoed after incessant hissy-fits. $800 drivers are big business.

• They torpedoed a governing body proposal for less stringent equipment rules that would have allowed for innovation, potentially helping less skilled golfers. Again, they want unsuspecting chops to overpay for stuff they get for free.

Since the USGA and R&A announced the watered-down 2028 rollback, the PGA Tour and PGA of America have continued to signal ambivalence about going along. They’ve written private letters magically leaked publicly to whip up support by suggesting they are thinking of the average golfer. Touching, isn’t it? Various industry toadies and other nimwits reply with shallow retorts about “who ever wanted to hit it shorter?” No one is kind enough to admit most golfers do not swing fast enough to see much, if any, loss in distance. And if they do, their other fellow 220-yard club members will also drive it 217.5.

Both organizations are planning to publicly oppose the decision based on the remarks of new PGA of America CEO Derek Sprague and word that PGA Tour players who are signaling opposition at their committee level.

Since neither organization has the wherewithal, smarts, or desire to spend millions creating an alternative to the Rules of Golf that get around R&A/USGA copyrights, why are the two PGA’s continuing to drive the bus? Players on the Tour are so unpopular and desperate to win over fans that they’re riding Bob Does Sports, Gabby Golf Girl, and Fat Perez at their biggest championship.

The two PGA’s are free to ignore 2028’s “Model Local Rule” that would usher in a “competition” ball for two years before the same limits apply to all golf balls.

The Rules of Golf are 100% optional.